Nonstop flight route between Tucson, Arizona, United States and Valence, France:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA), Tucson, Arizona, United States and Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF), Valence, France would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,764 miles (or 9,276 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Davis–Monthan Air Force Base and Valence - Chabeuil Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Davis–Monthan Air Force Base and Valence - Chabeuil Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA):

• Other military activities and federal agencies using the base include Navy Operational Support Center Tucson, a detachment of the Naval Air Systems Command, the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S.
• The closest airport to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Tucson International Airport (TUS), which is located only 5 miles (8 kilometers) SW of DMA.
• On 2 March 1949, the Lucky Lady II, a B-50A of the 43d Bombardment Wing, completed the first nonstop round-the-world flight, having covered 23,452 miles in 94 hours and 1 minute.
• In 1953, the jet age came to Davis-Monthan when SAC units on the base converted to the new Boeing B-47 Stratojet.
• In October 1981, President Ronald Reagan announced that, as part of the strategic modernization program, Titan II systems were to be retired by 1 October 1987.
• The furthest airport from Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DMA) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,508 miles (18,521 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• In 1962, the Strategic Air Command's 390th Strategic Missile Wing and its 18 Titan II ICBM sites around Tucson were activated.

Facts about Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF):

• In addition to being known as "Valence - Chabeuil Airport", other names for VAF include "Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Y-23" and "Aéroport de Valence - Chabeuil".
• Used by the French Air Force base after the war, it was closed and today the airport is used for general aviation, with no commercial airline service.
• Because of Valence - Chabeuil Airport's relatively low elevation of 525 feet, planes can take off or land at Valence - Chabeuil Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• The closest airport to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Grenoble–Isère Airport (GNB), which is located 36 miles (57 kilometers) NNE of VAF.
• Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) has 3 runways.
• Twelfth Air Force combat engineers moved into Valence-Chabeuil Airport in late August 1944, and cleared the airport of mines and destroyed German aircraft.
• The furthest airport from Valence - Chabeuil Airport (VAF) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is nearly antipodal to Valence - Chabeuil Airport (meaning Valence - Chabeuil Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Chatham Islands), and is located 12,333 miles (19,848 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.